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India ABCs
An alphabetical exploration of the people, geography, animals, history, and culture of India.
32 pages, Paperback
First published July 1, 2003
1 person is currently reading
17 people want to read
About the author
Marcie Aboff
87 books6 followers“I’ve always loved a good story. There’s something magical that happens when you open a book and are suddenly whisked off to a different place or another time where just about anything can happen … Stories make imagination real”
I was born and raised in a small suburban town in New Jersey, the youngest of three children. It was always a thrill when we had “library day” in elementary school and I got to pick out another new book. Some of my favorite authors growing up were Judy Blume and O. Henry. I love the surprise, twist ending of O. Henry’s stories.
In high school, I was editor of the school newspaper, but my favorite class was creative writing. I loved making up characters and plots and writing them down into a story. One of my fondest memories was when my creative writing teacher, Ms. Earl, read one of my short stories aloud for the class and when she finished she told the class, “this is how a short story should be written.” Wow - I felt on top of the world! Ms. Earl was one of those very special teachers that fueled my love of writing.
At Arizona State University, I broadened my writing interests with classes in broadcasting and I interned at the local PBS station on campus. My first “real” job was an editorial assistant for a daily newspaper in Escondido, California. Part of my job was writing the obituaries (not much room for creativity there!) I eventually became a feature writer/reporter. After a few years, I moved back to the east coast and worked in New York as a copywriter for an advertising specialty firm.
After I had my first child, I took time off from work and concentrated on what I really wanted to write – children’s stories. But I was certainly not an overnight success – I wrote for several years before I got published. I look back at some of my stories I wrote when I first started out and I have to laugh – like the story about the “talking vegetables who sang in the supermarket.” But I kept writing and learning my craft.
My first published story was sold to a children’s pre-teen magazine and I was thrilled. I got a small (very small!) check in the mail and I ran around the house feeling like I finally made it! Then I sold more stories to other children’s magazines like Highlights For Children and Spider. My first picture book, Uncle Willy’s Tickles, came shortly afterward.
I now have several published picture books, beginning readers and chapter books for both the trade and educational market. My latest beginning reader, The Giant Jelly Bean Jar, is a fun story about a jelly bean riddle contest.
I love visiting schools and libraries and talking to the kids about writing. Their creativity knows no bounds. I’ll never forget the time I was talking to a particular class of 4th graders. There were three rough-and-tough boys sitting in the back of the classroom who were clearly not interested in hearing an author speak, but at the end of my presentation, they were excited and smiling and talking about all the stories they wanted to write. What a great feeling!
I live in New Jersey with my three children and am part of a “blended” family – my fiancé has two children. With our five active kids, there is no shortage of story material from which to draw upon.
I was born and raised in a small suburban town in New Jersey, the youngest of three children. It was always a thrill when we had “library day” in elementary school and I got to pick out another new book. Some of my favorite authors growing up were Judy Blume and O. Henry. I love the surprise, twist ending of O. Henry’s stories.
In high school, I was editor of the school newspaper, but my favorite class was creative writing. I loved making up characters and plots and writing them down into a story. One of my fondest memories was when my creative writing teacher, Ms. Earl, read one of my short stories aloud for the class and when she finished she told the class, “this is how a short story should be written.” Wow - I felt on top of the world! Ms. Earl was one of those very special teachers that fueled my love of writing.
At Arizona State University, I broadened my writing interests with classes in broadcasting and I interned at the local PBS station on campus. My first “real” job was an editorial assistant for a daily newspaper in Escondido, California. Part of my job was writing the obituaries (not much room for creativity there!) I eventually became a feature writer/reporter. After a few years, I moved back to the east coast and worked in New York as a copywriter for an advertising specialty firm.
After I had my first child, I took time off from work and concentrated on what I really wanted to write – children’s stories. But I was certainly not an overnight success – I wrote for several years before I got published. I look back at some of my stories I wrote when I first started out and I have to laugh – like the story about the “talking vegetables who sang in the supermarket.” But I kept writing and learning my craft.
My first published story was sold to a children’s pre-teen magazine and I was thrilled. I got a small (very small!) check in the mail and I ran around the house feeling like I finally made it! Then I sold more stories to other children’s magazines like Highlights For Children and Spider. My first picture book, Uncle Willy’s Tickles, came shortly afterward.
I now have several published picture books, beginning readers and chapter books for both the trade and educational market. My latest beginning reader, The Giant Jelly Bean Jar, is a fun story about a jelly bean riddle contest.
I love visiting schools and libraries and talking to the kids about writing. Their creativity knows no bounds. I’ll never forget the time I was talking to a particular class of 4th graders. There were three rough-and-tough boys sitting in the back of the classroom who were clearly not interested in hearing an author speak, but at the end of my presentation, they were excited and smiling and talking about all the stories they wanted to write. What a great feeling!
I live in New Jersey with my three children and am part of a “blended” family – my fiancé has two children. With our five active kids, there is no shortage of story material from which to draw upon.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
May 25, 2022
This was made for kids and that's where my level of Indian knowledge is at, so...thumbs up! This is the book for me!
Realizing that pretty much all I knew about India and its people was the absolutely frickin' delicious food that they make made me feel like maybe I was selling them short. I mean, that cuisine is enough to float an entire culture and people's history upon, but still, I'm aware that Indian culture goes beyond their food, but I'd be f-ed if I had to do a 5 minute TED talk on it today! So, it's time to rectify that! Therefore, I start with baby steps...
Most of what was in this illustrated, elementary school book was something this nearly 50-year-old American knew about, had heard a few things about, or was vaguely aware of. It was a nice refresher before I move on to something meatier!
Realizing that pretty much all I knew about India and its people was the absolutely frickin' delicious food that they make made me feel like maybe I was selling them short. I mean, that cuisine is enough to float an entire culture and people's history upon, but still, I'm aware that Indian culture goes beyond their food, but I'd be f-ed if I had to do a 5 minute TED talk on it today! So, it's time to rectify that! Therefore, I start with baby steps...
Most of what was in this illustrated, elementary school book was something this nearly 50-year-old American knew about, had heard a few things about, or was vaguely aware of. It was a nice refresher before I move on to something meatier!
February 23, 2008
The land, history, culture, peoples of India and more are described, from “A is for art” and “B is for British India” to “Y is for yoga” and “Z is for zebu.” Occasional “fast facts” appearing throughout offer additional information. Lovely, multi-textured illustrations are reminiscent of intricate tapestries. Appendices include a section offering facts in brief, pronunciations for a few Indian phrases, a glossary, index, and further resources. While the information presented is too limited for extensive student research, the variety of topics provides an interesting introduction.
March 25, 2023
You learn many historical, religious, cultural about India, interesting or short facts through the book.
I've learn a lot in 15 minutes, making it a light reading. I would love to read 15 minutes of almost every country
I've learn a lot in 15 minutes, making it a light reading. I would love to read 15 minutes of almost every country
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August 18, 2023The ABCs using words important in India expressing more about Indian culture
February 28, 2024
I liked this book. It was good and the illustrations were great. The facts were very interesting.
March 19, 2014
This book is about different facts of India alphabetized by the name of the fact, for example, H is for Himalayas. This book has facts about art, different sports, celebrations and festivals, importance of certain animals, their flag, and different geographical features of the land. This children’s book does a great job collecting different facts about the culture, land, and the people of India.
This is a great book to teach about illustrations for the purpose of enticing the reader. This book includes an illustration on every page, but not just any illustration, a painted illustration or a mosaic illustration of the fact that is being read in the text. Students usually express their writing through a drawing, but there are so many more options to choose from; mosaics, painting, pastels, photography. With this book, students can see the great effect the illustration has on the writing and the different ways of creating an illustration.
This is a great book to teach about illustrations for the purpose of enticing the reader. This book includes an illustration on every page, but not just any illustration, a painted illustration or a mosaic illustration of the fact that is being read in the text. Students usually express their writing through a drawing, but there are so many more options to choose from; mosaics, painting, pastels, photography. With this book, students can see the great effect the illustration has on the writing and the different ways of creating an illustration.
October 10, 2015
India ABC's is a book for teaching kids about India and its culture in short. The book has illustrations which is based on mosaic art.The book can be used for children to talk about about places in India and its people. This book can be used as a read aloud because it has too many words on the page.Although the book is simple, however it does not capture your attention immediately. The interesting part is that at the end of the book, there is a glossary page and it teaches few words in Hindi. The children can understand what is represented in the book and can learn few words of Hindi.
An excerpt from the book-" Instead of using forks and spoons, many Indians eat with the fingers of their right hand."
An excerpt from the book-" Instead of using forks and spoons, many Indians eat with the fingers of their right hand."
September 11, 2012
This is an informational book. The book includes Indian words with the pronunciation. It explains the places and the people from India and their culture. At the bottom of each page, the book details fun facts about India. The illustrations are detailed so that the children can see what is being described. This book can be used in the classroom when the students are learning about different place around the world.
March 1, 2010
This is a good way to introduce kids to India and Indian culture. It's not very deep, as it is an ABC book, but I liked the images and the topics that were presented. I think it would be a good resource to use in the classroom, especially when trying to pique students' interest in India, and hopefully they'd go on to read more advanced, in-depth texts.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews